The Atlanta Hawks’ origins go back to 1946 when they were founded as the Buffalo Bisons in the now defunct National Basketball League (NBL). After only 38 days in Buffalo, the team moved to Illinois, where they were renamed the Tri-Cities Blackhawks. In 1949, they joined the NBA and 2 years later, they moved to Milwaukee and shortened their name to the Hawks. But it wasn’t until the team moved to St. Louis in 1955 when they started to see some success. The team qualified to play in the NBA Finals throughout the late 1950s and early 1960s, and won their first NBA Championship in 1958. Ten years later, the Hawks moved to Atlanta where they remain today.

In the early 1980s, the Atlanta Hawks acquired the most recognizable superstar of its Atlanta years, Dominique Wilkins. Wilkins was known as “the Human Highlight Film” because of his impressively acrobatic slam dunks that thrilled Atlanta Hawks Ticket Holders. He led the team to 4 consecutive 50-win seasons in the 1980s, however his individual accomplishments didn’t lead to post-season success for his team. Atlanta never advanced past the second round of the NBA playoffs in his 12 seasons with the Hawks.

After not seeing the playoffs for 9 seasons, the Hawks returned to post-season play during the 2007–2008 season. The Hawks remained a perennial post-season presence for several more years until the 2014–2015 season, when they won a franchise-record 60 games and advanced to the Eastern Conference finals for the first time since relocating to Atlanta. Their success proved to be short lived and they fell into a slump the following years.

Atlanta Hawks Ticket Holders attend home games at State Farm Arena. Hawks fans can get their tickets to see the on-court action from Golden Tickets.